Page 78 of The Price of Power

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I carefully rapped my knuckles against the apartment door—not too light to cause suspicion and not too hard to cause concern. Then, I waited.

And waited.

After a dozen seconds or so, my heart began to pound hard in my chest. Had something gone wrong? A kaleidoscope of doomsday scenarios played in my head.

What if I had the wrong address? What if the FBI had caught wind that the D’Angelos knew about Theo, so they’d moved him? Or, worst of all, what if I was too late and Gabriel’s brother had already paid a visit?

Don’t go down that road, I scolded myself. Just stick to the plan.

I was raising my hand, ready to knock one more time, when the knob began to jiggle. I held my breath as the door opened just a sliver.

But a sliver was all I needed.

I let out a sigh of relief as I saw my brother on the other side, the flimsy-looking chain lock stretched tight between us.

“Theo,” I breathed.

Instantly, his eyes widened, and his nostrils flared. “Don’t say my name,” he hissed.

I wanted to roll my eyes, but I didn’t have the time. “Thank God I found you before it was too late. Let me in.”

His whole body tightened up as he gave his head a tight shake. “Can’t do that. I’m not allowed to let anyone in,” he said. “I wasn’t even supposed to open the door, but then I saw it was through the peephole. How did you know I was here?”

“The D’Angelos have informants in the FBI,” I explained. “I overheard someone giving Gabriel your address. He’s sending someone over tonight to permanently shut you up.”

Theo’s face went white.

“That can’t be true,” he said, shaking his head in denial. “You’re lying.”

Oh, for fucks sake.

“Why would I lie?” I asked him. “Just think about it for half a second, and you’ll know it’s true. How else would I have known where to find you?”

Theo’s eyes flashed back and forth. I could practically see the panicked thoughts spinning in his brain. “What the hell am I going to do?”

Fortunately, that was a question I could answer.

“You’re going to come with me,” I told him. “And I’m going to get you out of this city.”

“But…but…” he stammered.

“Now, Theo!” I did my best to channel Gabriel’s commanding tone. And even though it paled in comparison, it still did what I needed it to do.

Theo stopped freaking out long enough to undo the chain lock and open the door all the way.

“Give me a minute,” he said. “I need to get my stuff.”

I grabbed his arm before he could take a single step. “What part of someone is on his way here to kill you are you not grasping?”

“Don’t talk to me like I’m an idiot, Liv,” Theo shouted.

“Then stop acting like one,” I shot back. “We don’t have time to argue. We have to leave now.”

“But what about Agent Dougherty?”

I threw up my hands? “Who the hell is that?”

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